| 主权项 |
1. A method of separating fluid-suspended plant propagules from non-plant propagule tissues comprising the steps of:
a. providing a suitable separator container, said container containing fluid having a density lower than of the embryos to be separated, being essentially cylindrical in shape, having an essentially flat bottom wall and an essentially vertical axis, and comprising a conduit in communication with the fluid in the container at an axial region of the bottom wall during operation, and providing a rotation object positioned inside the container for inducing an axisymmetric rotating flow; b. creating a sink vortex at the axial region of the bottom wall by draining fluid from said conduit, and inducing an axisymmetric rotating flow in the fluid relative to the bottom wall by rotating the rotation object, thus:
i. creating a viscous boundary layer at the bottom wall; andii. creating a radial pressure gradient in the separator container; c. introducing the fluid-suspended plant propagules and the non-plant propagule tissues to be separated into the fluid present in the separator container at a location away from the bottom wall, thus:
i. sedimenting the plant propagules faster than the non-plant propagule tissues tissue;ii. allowing the plant propagules to enter the viscous boundary layer while not allowing the non-plant propagule tissues to enter the viscous boundary layer;iii. drawing the plant propagules entering the viscous boundary layer into the axial region of the bottom wall; and d. collecting plant propagules from said axial region of the bottom wall in the fluid drained from the conduit, whereby the collected are essentially separated from the non-plant propagule tissue. |
